Let me see 1 2 3 4 5 6…12…. There’s more, but I can’t remember now. That is the number of roof top restaurant in Bangkok at the moment. Don’t get me wrong roof top restaurants are great. I love going to these venue. In general they provide open air dinning with panoramic views of the city. L’Appart is located at the Sofitel Sukhumvit, one of the most anticipate hotel in this area which just open in April 2012.

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Located on the 32nd floor, we enter a lounge area with a bar and comfortable leather sofas. The lighting was toned down providing an even more relaxed feeling. The overall feel was like a very large living room. After taking over one of the large sofa we ordered some wine to start the evening.Click on image to view large
There is an extensive wine list; a bottle would cost starting at a little over a thousand baht to rare 6 figures digit. I like to go from the bottom then go up. We end up with a Chardonnay Concha y Toro, Reservado (1,320 baht, 270 by the glass) not bad for a little over a thousand baht wine and for this ambiance it is was pretty good. We ask the waitress to bring our wines to the outside terrace. It was about to get dark, the sky has turn saturated blue. The picturistic view of Sukhumvit and Bangkok skyline made the wine even better.
My date was getting hungry and decided to move in for dinner. The restaurant had many seating choices which mimic an apartment (that’s where the name “L’Appart”came from); there was the lounge area (living room), terrace, the library, the hall way, and the dining room. We opted for the dining room; we wanted a more formal dining experience. Our table was looking right into the open kitchen. The chef Jeremy Tourret came to greet us at the table. He recommended some dishes. We tried some of the dishes he recommended and tried other items from the menu. The menu was only 2 pages, about a bit less than 30 items but it seem to have a variety of seafood and meat dishes.
Hokkaido scallops and mango carpaccio, spicy red caspicum coulis (750), scallops were tasty cut not too thin paired with a mango was an interesting combination that work. Both of us are big fans of raw food.
It was time to refill our drinks; the drink list was very extensive cocktails rum gin whiskey cognac champagne wines and the list goes on. There were many drinks I’d like to try but we started with wine so we continued with wine. This name “Mad Fish” Shiraz (2860 baht/ 600 per glass) my eye in the wine list, the waitress also recommends it. Even though most of our dishes were seafood, the wine was appealing and in a way complimented the food.
½ dozen French fine de Claire oysters with 3 sauces; the usual mignonette, Thai spicy sauce, and chef Jeremy’s own sauce (850). The oysters were fine quality fine de Claire, by itself was already good. The sauce gave it more dimensions but doesn’t over power the oysters. The Thai spicy was like the juices from somtam with a bit of ginger. It was ok; I would have liked it more if there was no ginger. Jeremy’s version I liked very much, it had a light cucumber, citrus and creamy scent which complements the oysters.
Salmon tartar, cold risotto (700), looked beautifully presented. A nice composition of dot lines and planes, there are so many elements and colors. The creamy risotto went well with the salmon; there was a hint of citrus and a bit of Thai spice.
Pan fried cod fish, coco beurre blanc, caviar lemon and crushed potato (990), the cod was perfectly cooked a tasty crisp skin with a thick juicy white meat. The coconut beurre blanc sauce gave a since of Thai flavor. What made this dish really shine was the caviar; it appeared to look like shrimp caviar but the flavors was tangy. The chef said it was citrus caviar, a rare fruit, pulps are round. It made the dish tasted even more complex.
Pan fried lamb filet was cooked just right, it was pink in the middle (1,100). The almond crust and the fruit garden (dried fruit, zucchini piste) made it even more interesting.
The looking at the activity in the open kitchen the chefs were very efficient. The food was served pretty fast, it didn’t not look like they were doing much but new dishes appealed at the table without hesitation. Chef Jeremy did a great job leading his team and took a lot of care and attention in the presentation of each dish.Click on image to view large

We end our meal at the terrace, with another wine; a red from Mondavi Woodbridge, it’s a blend of Zinfandel and petite Shiraz. The wine had powerful berry nose and very jammy. I was impressed with this wine. It was a nice alternative for desert. Among the many roof top venues in Bangkok; L’appart is the one with great views, great ambiance and great food. Bangkok is blessed to have so many good roof top restaurants. This one is another one I would have to come more frequent. L’Appart Sofitel Sukhumvit 189 Sukhumvit Road Soi 13-15 , Klongtoey Nua Wattana , 10110 BANGKOK, THAILAND Tel. (+66)2/1269999
Vanessa Wannasiri S. lifestyle guru
Citrus Caviar

Current: Editor of At-Bangkok.com, Managing Director at dp-Studio Co. Ltd.
Past: Lecturer, Instructor at School of Architecture King Mongkut University of Technology, Architect at RNL Architect, Architect at Roth Sheppard Architects
Education: School of Architecture Chulalongkorn University Bangkok Thailand (B.Arch)
School of Architecture University of Arizona USA - School of Architecture University of Colorado, Denver USA (M. Arch)